Sharing my love of seed beads, bead weaving and bead embroidery, and the success, doubts and insights that go along with it all!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Etsy Beadweavers September Challenge

It's time again to celebrate the talent and imaginings of The Etsy Beadweavers as they create wearable art for their monthly challenge. This month is "Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!" The challenge was to create a piece that features a wild animal and some element from the Wizard of Oz.

You're walking into the deep, dark forest and all you hear is the
rustling of leaves and the beating of your heart. You imagine the eyes
of forest creatures watching you behind every leaf and tree. Are they
hiding, those Ravens, Owls and Hawks? Let's hope your friends are with
you!

Who doesn't love the Wizard of Oz when Dorothy, the Tin Man
and Scarecrow walk frightened into the forest chanting "Lions, Tigers,
and Bears, Oh My!". That happens to be this month's Etsy Beadweavers
Challenge, and I've created this necklace I've called "The Forest Has
Eyes" expressly for the September Challenge.

At the heart of this
beadwoven and bead embroidered piece is a stunning cab by Golem Design
Studio http://golemstudio.com/, a part of their Wild Jungle series that
features a collage of birds (and a fish!). I've used seed beads in the
colors of the cab, blue, turquoise, purple, yellow and white along with
some opaque turquoise crystals, gold luster purple crystals, white and
teal glass pearls, opal purple glass beads and metallic purple bugle
beads to accent the cab and two mountain jade purple cabs. There are
two big birds flanking the middle cab with bugle bead "feathers" all
around. All over the piece you can see glass pearl "eyes" surrounded by
tiny seed beads.

The piece is suspended by a herringbone rope
necklace punctuated by the assorted larger beads with a silver leaf hook
closure. The 22" necklace is part metallic purple and part luster
turquoise seed beads. The back of the embroidered piece is lined with
tan ultrasuede.

Please visit our team blog,
www.etsy-beadweavers.blogspot.com
(http://www.etsy-beadweavers.blogspot.com) between the 9th and 15th and
vote for your favorite entry.